Almost from the day it opened, California Adventure was viewed as the less attractive stepsister to Disneyland, but with the debut today of the much anticipated Cars Land, that’s all likely to change.

An ambitious 12-acre re-creation of the Disney-Pixar hit “Cars” that transports visitors to the fictional town of Radiator Springs, Cars Land culminates a five-year makeover of California Adventure park.

The more than $1 billion revamp of California Adventure is meant to strengthen the park’s connection to the Disney brand and some of its more-recent cinematic creations like “Toy Story” and “Cars.”

Visitors will enter the park through the new Buena Vista Street, which hearkens back to 1920s Los Angeles, when Walt Disney arrived in California.

From the elegant new Carthay Circle Restaurant, inspired by the 1930s Carthay Circle Theater in Los Angeles where “Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs” premiered, to Radiator Springs Racers, a high-speed ride through Radiator Springs, the new offerings are expected to be worthy companions to Disneyland’s top, iconic attractions.

U-T San Diego got a firsthand look Thursday at the park’s new rides and restaurants.

The food

When the culinary professionals set out to create dining options for the fictional Cars Land, researching the eats along Route 66 was a must.

That research can be seen in eateries like Flo’s V8 Cafe, which serves rotisserie meats and single-serve old-fashioned pies, and the Cozy Cone Motel, inspired by the wigwam hotels along Route 66. Think chili con queso served in an edible bread cone, reminiscent of the old Frito pies of the ’50s and ’60s, when chile con queso was served in Frito bags.

“We start with the setting, and in this case, it’s the original ‘Cars’ movie setting, Route 66, the heartland of America, Radiator Springs,” explained Lenny DeGeorge, executive chef of concept development for Disney Park. “You take everything you’d find along Route 66, you think about comfort food, diners, Americana, the things that people would stop at for home-cooked meal along the way.”

Even the staff waiting on customers are dressed in diner-style dress.

“In the beginning, we landed on pies, that blue plate special design and milk shakes,” DeGeorge said. “That was the core of the menu, and it stayed all the way through.”

In all, there are seven new dining spots in Cars Land and along Buena Vista Street. Six serve fast-casual food.

The challenge for the park’s culinary team members was to put their more-updated spin on the classic comfort foods from the ’50s and earlier.

“Think about the roll you would have been served,” said DeGeorge. “It would have been a white roll, but for us it’s now a garlic chive brioche roll.”

A standout among the new restaurants is clearly Carthay Circle Restaurant and Lounge, which boasts that it will have more than 90 sommeliers. The elegant two-level dining spot is part of the Carthay Circle Theater, the new iconic landmark for California Adventure.